TK-16127 attended and reported back… “What a great troop! The theme of the banquet was started with the scout leader as a Jedi doing mind tricks on me protecting his cubs. I even had lines to memorize! They worked me into their award ceremony, right down to cutting the cake for the kids. The cake even had a light and dark side. They put a lot of effort into it and I was glad to be a part of it.” Great Work Trooper!

On February 28th, the New England Garrison, along with the Rebel Legion and the Mando Mercs, were invited to Star Wars Hockey night, as the UMass Lowell River Hawks took on the University of Vermont Catamounts.

The Garrison suited up before the doors opened to the public, then walked around the lobby to greet people as they came in for the game. Troopers then walked around the upper area of the arena during the game. There were many “photo ops” with fans through out the evening!

Garrison members were even able to walk out on the ice, waving to the crowd and encouraging cheers during 1st intermission. Vader rode the Zamboni during 2nd intermission and others helped toss t-shirts into the crowd. And at one point, Captain Rex managed to start the wave! Also, NEG members brought stuffed toys for the Simba-cam. A mini-TK and an Ewok where raised upon high!

It was a fun atmosphere that night. The fans were happy to see us at what was the last home game of the season for UMass Lowell before the playoffs. And by the way, the score was tied that night, 2 to 2!

On February 28th, the New England Garrison was invited to the Ragged Mountain Ski Resort in Danbury, NH for their Star Wars Ski Day.

The event was sponsored by Coca-Cola, and a donation was made to CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates. They are a non-profit organization that provides volunteer advocates for children in need. They also held a silent auction and raffles during the day to raise funds.

The ski resort was filming promo videos while we were there. They asked if anyone was willing to ski or snow tube in costume. They were also looking for people willing to ride the ski lift in costume.

Troopers reported back that it was a great day on the slopes. There was tubing for those who didn’t ski, and many younglings in Jedi robes.

On February 28th, the New England Garrison, along with the Alderaan Base, and costumed super-heros, pirates, KISS impersonators and many others, gathered for the rockin’ Benefit for Emma. The night was a fundraiser for a six year old girl who is battling cancer.

Ten Thousand Dollars was raised that night, through donations, auctions and raffles. And it was good time too! There was live music, many children in attendance, plenty of food & drink, and lots of good friends. With so many people in costume, the night had the feel of a mini con!

For more information about Emma, and how you can still donate, please check out these links…

On Sunday, September 21st members of the 501st New England Garrison paid a special visit to a very special person. Peter Allen dreamed of joining the 501st but unfortunately was diagnosed with ALS before he could finish his TIE Pilot costume. So members of the garrison took it upon themselves to finish the costume for Peter and make sure that his dream came true. Welcome to the 501st Legion pilot!!!

On Saturday, September 20th members of the Rebel Legion – Alderaan Base and the 501st Legion – New England Garrison participated in the 4th annual Skating For Hope event. This is a 24-hour fundraiser that helps to fund the Hope Lodge, which provides temporary housing for out-of-state families coming to area hospitals getting treated for cancer.

During the weekend of September 13th and 14th members of the New England Garrison and Alderaan Base attended Granite State Comic Con in Manchester, NH. Troopers and Jedi were there to greet sci-fi fans and comic book enthusiasts as they patrolled the aisles. We also brought out our Death Star Trash Compactor and Action Figure photo backdrop for everyone to enjoy! It was a great weekend and lots of fun pictures were taken with our members and fellow costumers.

On Saturday, September 13th, members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison and Connecticut Garrison participated an the Shriners Children’s Hospital Walk-a-Thon fundraiser! These dedicated troopers marched onto the hospital grounds to greet walkers and cheer them on as they donated their time to help out with this great cause. The hospital in Springfield offers world-class medical care to those in need, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about how you could help the Shriners Children’s Hospital please visit their website. https://www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org/Locations/springfield

On Saturday, August 23rd members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison hosted a “maker booth” where they demonstrated some of the techniques we use in making our costumes. Everything from thermo-forming plastic, roto-casting with a 2-part resin, LED wiring, and more was on display. In addition to the demos there was also a small band of troopers wandering the grounds and posing for pictures with guests.

To learn more about this annual Maker Faire please head over to their website. http://makerfairedover.com/

On Saturday, August 16th members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison and Wampa Clan of the Mandalorian Mercs paid a visit to Hadlock Field, home of the Portland Sea Dogs! There were two Stormtroopers, three bounty hunters, and an R2-D2 patrolling the concourse before and during the game to greet fans and pose for pictures. The game started off with the ceremonial 1st pitch by one of the Empire’s best pitcher/Stormtroopers, and it was a perfect strike too! Now only if they could aim their blasters with such precision.

On Saturday, August 16th members of the Rebel Legion – Alderaan Base and the 501st Legion – New England Garrison stopped by Liquid Planet Water Park for their annual “Star Wars Day”! Members were on-hand to greet guests at the water park and pose for pictures and fan favorite, R2-D2 was also in attendance! Kids and adults alike were encouraged to come out wearing their own Star Wars costumes as well.

To see more photos from this event check out our Flickr page. https://www.flickr.com/photos/swnewengland/sets/72157646191081167/

Over the weekend of August 8th through the 10th members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison and the Rebel Legion – Alderaan Base attended the super-sized convention called BOSTON COMIC CON!!! Over the course of this 3-day show members patrolled the Seaport Convention Center and mingled with their fellow sci-fi and comic book fans. This was also the first event where we debuted our newest props; a small scale replica of the Death Star Trash Compactor and a life size Kenner action figure photo backdrop! Thanks to the efforts of our members we were able to raise $900 for the Shriners Children’s Hospital.

To see more photos of this event check out our Flickr page. https://www.flickr.com/photos/swnewengland/sets/72157646320685166/

On Sunday, July 20th members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison and the Rebel Legion – Alderaan Base paid another visit to the Franklin Park Zoo to take part in their Dreamlight program. This is a great program that brings kids with special needs and disabilities to the zoo so they can see the animals after hours, making it easier for them to get around and fully enjoy their wildlife experience!

To learn more about the Franklin Park Zoo please check out their website. http://www.zoonewengland.org/

On Saturday, July 19th members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison paid a visit to the Ipswich Masonic Lodge for their annual Family Day. Darth Vader and a squad of faithful Legion members patrolled the grounds and greeted fans as they enjoyed the beautiful weather.

On Friday, July 18th members of the 501st Legion – New England Garrison and the Rebel Legion – Alderaan Base were joined by R2-D2 to greet the kids in New Bedford “Space & Robotics” school program. This is a great program that encourages kids to get more involved with math and science by teaching them that science can be fun! The kids were treated to a presentation on the history of robots in sci-fi, then got to see two droids first hand. Starting off with a show of what R2-D2 can do, complete with rotating head, lights and sound. Then the kids were treated to a droid still under construction where they got to see all of the motors and parts inside of a finished droid. The kids all had a blast meeting their favorite characters from Star Wars, along with a few troopers and Jedi as well.